Weekly Newsletter: Light from Darkness

Some of the darkest times in my life were times when I felt as if the Light had abandoned me. Recently I listened as a friend told of how his faith supported him during times when everyone had seemed to have forsaken him. Yet, I know him well enough to know that it was not the “faith” of the religion he left that allowed him to get beyond those dark days and nights.

The faith he spoke of wasn’t in religion, or in a religious person. The religion he left — left him. He was abandoned, shunned, made to feel shame and guilt. The faith he speaks of is his faith that there had to be something beyond religion — something so personal and deeply spiritual that even though he had been abandoned by the people he loved, he knew some Higher Power had never abandoned him, and would never abandon him.

This wasn’t an instant awakening for my friend. He lost himself in many ways and explored many things he had been denied. Still, he knew he wasn’t alone. In time, when the lure of partying lost its appeal, he looked for and found his spiritual path. The only way he knew to connect was through organized religion, and he was fortunate. He found the help he desired.
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For me, and many others, faith is trust in a Higher Power. Wisdom and common sense tell me that churches, synagogues, and temples don’t have a monopoly on finding The Divine, or our spiritual path to Home. Light comes from darkness because there is something in the dark watching over us.